$92,817 payment to outgoing MLAs comes under fire

Wall, Boyd should accept smaller ‘transition allowances’: watchdog

Premier Brad Wall and former economy minister Bill Boyd, both of whom have announced plans to resign their seats in the provincial legislature, are entitled to claim “transition allowances” worth $92,817.

A taxpayers’ advocacy group says that’s too much and both politicians should accept less.

Through a government spokeswoman, Wall said he intends to keep the allowance, which is provided under the rules of the legislative assembly, “as previous MLAs have done under the same guidelines.”

Boyd’s intentions are unclear. He was not available for comment on Thursday, according to a Saskatchewan Party caucus official.

Any MLA who loses an election, chooses not to stand for re-election or resigns is eligible to claim one month’s pay for each year of service, up to a lifetime maximum of 12 months, as a transition allowance, according to legislative assembly rules.

The maximum is $92,817 after a 3.5 per cent wage cut imposed on all MLAs effective April 1.

Wall, who was elected as the MLA for Swift Current in 1999, is entitled to claim the full amount. Boyd’s current stint in the legislature began in November 2007, which would make him eligible for $77,345.

However, he did not claim the allowance after stepping down as the MLA for Kindersley in 2002 after 11 years, and is therefore able to claim the full amount, according to the province.

Saskatchewan’s approach to compensating elected officials is generally more responsible than that of other provinces, chiefly because it does not have a defined benefit pension plan, but the transition allowance is still too much and halving it would be a “good first step,” said Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) Prairie director Todd MacKay.

“Capping it at even six months would still leave a very generous allowance but it would show leadership in reducing that cost,” MacKay said.

“I think (Wall and Boyd volunteering to accept less than the maximum) would be a great thing to see, but more important would be to fix the overall policy for the future.”

The CTF has long advocated against the transition allowance. In a 2006 report submitted to a legislative committee, the advocacy group recommended eliminating it altogether based on the principle that a sitting MLA who loses an election is effectively fired for “just cause,” and that private sector employees terminated for the same reason do not typically receive severance.

“We do have to give them credit that they reduced their own salaries by 3.5 per cent,” MacKay said of the government’s decision, taken as part of its larger strategy to cut costs in the face of a $1.2 billion deficit.

“That’s an important move, and it’s an important piece of leadership. But it would be right to follow through with that leadership and reduce the transition allowances as well.”

MLA compensation is determined by the Board of Internal Economy, a bipartisan committee chaired by Speaker Corey Tochor and consisting of two cabinet ministers, two government backbenchers and two members of the official opposition. It will not be clear until the second volume of public accounts are released whether any MLAs who lost seats the last election declined the allowance.

Tochor was not available for an interview on Thursday, according to the Speaker’s office.

Wall on Aug. 10 announced his plan to step down as premier and resign his Swift Current seat once the Sask. Party chooses a new leader, which is expected to occur at the party convention in Saskatoon on Jan. 27. Five days later, Boyd — who has spent more than a year mired in controversy related to Global Transportation Hub land deals — said he plans to step down on Sept. 1.